Love For Allah In Present Times
In the present era, people have become so preoccupied in satisfying the need of their bodies that they are oblivious of Allah (Glorious and Exalted is He). Everyone is prey to the deceits of their base desires [nafs] and is absorbed in submitting to whatever these desires dictates.
I found no one whose heart’s condition was sound and true,
I found worshippers of idols, but found not a worshipper of Allah.
It seems that those chests that used to glow like burning red coal due to an intense love for Allah (Glorious and Exalted is He) are today no more than heaps of ash. People have become unfamiliar with the inner reality [haqiqah] of worship. They attend the prayer, yet remain absent in spirit. They abstain from food and drink while fasting, yet they do not wholly refrain from sin. Their state of fasting extends to their stomachs, yet fails to encompass their eyes.
The frenzy of love no longer remains,
That (passionate) heart, that yearning are no more,
Prayer, fasting, qurbani, and Hajj all remain,
But love for You is no more.
There was once a time when young men and women used to awaken in the last portion of the night to prostrate before Allah (Glorious and Exalted is He) and to warm their hearts with the dhikr of “La ilaha illa’Llah.” Today, the faces of those whose restlessly passed the night away, yearning for the Beloved (Glorious and Exalted is He), are seen no more. Those believers whose gaze could pierce the hearts are no longer to be found.
The hearts trembled in the breast due to your gaze,
Alas, the devotion of the pious is no longer among us.
It is for this reason that the Muslims of today are overpowered by cowardice, so much so that they are afraid even of the dark. They fear going to a desolate place. Even the clawing of cat frightens them. It is amazing that a Muslim who is scared of the mere ruffling of a window curtain, does not fear Allah (Glorious and Exalted is He). It is unfathomable why the fear of creation constantly preoccupies man’s heart; fear that one’s employer may become angry, fear that one’s wife may become angry, fear that if one speaks the truth then so-and-so might become angry, or fear that if a marriage is celebrated in a simple manner then relatives may become angry. The reality is that until the heart is purified and one’s gaze becomes pure, a person cannot become courageous.
The heart is free from passion for Allah; the gaze is not pure,
What surprise is it then? That you are not courageous?
Our predecessors [aslaf] safeguarded the respect and honor of women at a time when people used to sell their own sisters. They prostrated before Allah (Glorious and Exalted is He) at a time when people used to bow at others. They opposed tyranny at a time when people proudly committed oppression. The Muslims of today bear only a superficial resemblance to them. In terms of spiritual piety, we are as far from them as the sky is from the Earth. They were seekers of Allah (Glorious and Exalted is He) and we are the seekers of the material world [dunya]. They annihilated their base desires [nafs], while we submit to ours. They were people who strove on the Straight Path, while we passively draw near to our graves. They were kind and welcoming toward one another, whereas we have anger and spite toward one another. They maintained their honor and dignity, whereas we have lost all respect. Their hearts were full of love for Allah (Glorious and Exalted is He) while our hearts are devoid of such love. Our disgraceful condition has reached such an abyss that even the supplications [du’a] of our pious ones have lost effects, save those that are accepted by the will of Allah (Glorious and Exalted is He).
I spent one night crying profusely before Allah,
Asking him why the Muslims have become so disgraced,
A voice said, ‘You know well that while the Muslims have hearts,
Their hearts are devoid of the Beloved.’
Those who have purified their hearts are deeply concerned with the fallen state of the Muslims and earnestly supplicate to their Lord to rectify this condition.
Today, there are very few people who remain awake throughout the night in acts of worship [ibadat], and there are even fewer who use this time to win over the Beloved (Glorious and Exalted is He) through tears and desire. The first portion of the night is indulged in fun and entertainment and the last portion is spent sleeping and dreaming. To sleep soon after the night prayer is [isha‘] is a sunnah. Nowadays, many shops begin to get crowded after the night prayer. In particular, shops where food and drink are sold remain open until two in the morning. When it is two o’clock, and the time of the night vigil [tahajjud] begins, these people head for their beds and then miss the morning prayer [fajr]. Many people have passed years without witnessing dawn or sunrise. The person who claims to be unable to wake up for the morning prayer at dawn, regularly awakens shortly thereafter eager for breakfast.
If a person is offered a wage of one hundred dollars to remain awake the entire night and stand guard, he will readily sacrifice his night’s sleep. Yet on the night he is off-duty, if he is asked to stay awake for half the night and pray the night vigil [tahajjud], he will reply that he is unable to wake up. Thus in his eyes, the value of tahajjud is not even fifty dollars, even though in the last portion of the night the angels announce in the sky: Is there anyone asking
for something that it may be granted to him?
From the Giver there is an offer, but the one who could have accepted it is snoring loudly, deep in sleep.
Once a man was offering his prayer when a woman with her head uncovered passed in front of him, crying and screaming. The man quickly completed his prayer and admonished her, “O servant of Allah, are u blind? I was praying and you disrespectfully passed in front of me,” The woman replied, “If you permit, I would like to tell you something.” The man said, “Fine.” She said, “My husband divorced me, and because of the love I had for him, I become deranged and did not notice that I passed in front of you. But what kind of sincere ashiq are you that even in your prayer you are aware of who passes in front of you? Do you offer prayer whilst looking at your Master or at women passing in front of you?” What of the command: …that you worship Allah as if you are seeing Him.
In our time, there is an increasing tendency in the Friday prayer [jumu’ah] toward journalistic talks on current events. Indeed, while our pious predecessors prepared their Friday sermons from the books of Quranic exegesis [tafsir] and hadith, today the Friday lecture is prepared from newspapers.
Every word of the speaker’s lecture is entertaining,
But alas, there is no love for the Creator in his eyes,
Nor the radiance of certainty of faith on his face.
Nowadays, the sanctuaries devoted to spiritual reform [khanaqahs] are also becoming empty. Even those person connected to spiritual guides [masha’ikh] do not have time to perform dhikr. It has become increasingly difficult to recite invocations [tasbihat] or to fill one’s heart with spiritual radiance [nur].
We should thank Allah (Glorious and Exalted is He) that even today some people remain who are grieved by the lack of love for Allah (Glorious and Exalted is He). Their existence itself is a blessing.
- Shaikh Zulfiqar Ahmad Naqshbandi – Love For Allah

As for him who fears to stand before his Lord and restrains the ego its desires, the Garden is shelter.(The Snatchers:40)

Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said, "The Fire is surrounded by all kinds of desires and passions, while Paradise is surrounded by all kinds of disliked, undesirable things."(Bukhari)

Whoever does good at night is rewarded during the day and whoever does good during the day is rewarded at night. Whoever is sincere in abandoning a desire is saved from catering to it. God is too noble to punish a heart that has abandoned a desire for His sake.(Abu Sulayman ad-Darani)

Beware of your ego, and trust not its mischief; The ego is worse than seventy devils. (Arabic Poem)

I seek God's forgiveness, and do not claim that my intention in producing this Blog is confined to good religious purposes; how may I do so when I am aware of the hidden desires,
egotistic passions, and worldly wishes that I harbour?
I do not claim innocence for myself; the ego is indeed an inciter to evil, save when my Lord shows mercy; my Lord is indeed Forgiving, Merciful.
O God! I seek Your protection against my committing idolatry [shirk] knowingly, and Your forgiveness for that of which I am not aware!
I ask God to make me and all other believers benefit from this Blog and to render my production of it purely for the sake of His Noble Countenance.